Search Interface

The search interface provides a powerful way to explore your codebase using Zoekt query syntax.

Search Bar

Basic Search

Enter your query in the search bar and press Enter or click Search.

function handleRequest

Results appear instantly with matching code highlighted.

Query Syntax

Code Search uses Zoekt query syntax for powerful searching. Here are the most common patterns:

Search in Files or Paths

Pattern	Description
foo bar	Both “foo” and “bar” (implicit AND)
foo or bar	Either “foo” or “bar”
"exit boot"	Exact phrase match
FOO case:yes	Case-sensitive search
/open(File|Dir)/	Regular expression

Filter Results

Modifier	Example	Description
file:	file:README setup	Filter by filename
repo:	repo:torvalds/linux test	Filter by repository
lang:	lang:typescript	Filter by language
branch:	branch:main	Filter by branch
case:yes	FOO case:yes	Case-sensitive search
case:no	foo case:no	Case-insensitive (default)
-lang:	foo -lang:c	Negate filter
-file:	foo -file:test	Exclude files
-repo:	foo -repo:deprecated	Exclude repository

Note

By default, searches return results from the HEAD (default) branch only. Use branch: to search other branches if they are indexed.

Advanced

Pattern	Description
file:\.py$	Files ending in “.py”
sym:main	Symbol definitions
content:README	Search content only (not filenames)

Tip

For the complete query syntax reference, see Query Syntax.

Combined Queries

repo:myorg/api lang:go func.*Handler -file:test

This searches for:

• Pattern matching func.*Handler (regex)
• In Go files
• In the myorg/api repo
• Excluding files with “test” in the path

Search Results

Results List

Each result shows:

• Repository name - The source repository
• File path - Path to the matching file
• Matching lines - Code with syntax highlighting
• Line numbers - For easy reference

Code Preview

Click on any result to expand and see more context around the match.

Advanced Features

Regular Expressions

Use /pattern/ syntax for regex matching:

/func\s+\w+Handler\(/

Matches function declarations ending in Handler.

Symbol Search

Search for symbol definitions:

sym:CreateUser

Finds definitions (functions, classes, types) named CreateUser.

Search Examples

Find Functions

lang:go sym:auth

Find Go symbol definitions related to authentication.

Find Imports

import "github.com/pkg/errors"

Find files importing a specific package.

Find FOOs

FOO or BAR or BAZ

Find all FOO comments.

Security Audit

password or secret or apikey -file:test

Find potential secrets (excluding tests).

Keyboard Shortcuts

Shortcut	Action
/	Focus search bar
Escape	Clear search / close preview
↑ / ↓	Navigate results
Enter	Open result

URL Sharing

The search query is encoded in the URL - share it with teammates:

http://localhost:3000?q=repo:api+lang:go+handler

Tips

Tip

Start broad and narrow down. Add filters as needed to find what you’re looking for.

Tip

Use file: to search within specific directories: file:src/api/

Tip

Exclude tests and generated code: -file:test -file:generated -file:mock

Tip

View the full Zoekt query syntax documentation at: https://github.com/sourcegraph/zoekt/blob/main/doc/query_syntax.md

Next Steps

• Connections - Managing code host connections
• Repositories - Repository management